Kaleidoscope
by Fell-and-Fallen
Summary: A collection of one-shots- snapshots of the kaleidoscopic Ninjago universe and perhaps beyond. Requests are gladly taken from any and all, and even OC's will be considered (as long as they are within reason). Unlimited options, and unlimited possibilities. [Rating subject to change, but will hopefully stay T and under.]
1. A Dish Best Served Cold

**Welcome to Kaleidoscope! I hope you enjoy your stay and don't hesitate to leave a Review/Request! **

**1: A Dish Best Served Cold**

**After months of torment, Zane has finally had enough of Cole's atrocious cooking and decides to put an end to it. **

**1000-ish words.**

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I like to pride myself as being a calm, collected individual. It is a stance I have worked hard to maintain, especially given the circumstances of our mission. Training the destined Green Ninja, fighting Lord Garmadon, saving the world- It is a heavy burden that might crush a lesser person and one I have devoted myself to following through.

Even before discovering my origins, I'd been told time and again of my strange, "robotic" ways that apparently bordered on complete apathy. But since becoming a member of this team I have instead changed my disposition to one of quiet and careful objectivity. It's been my experience working with my brothers and teammates that, in the face of danger, at least one of us has to maintain a cool composure. As the Master of Ice, it seemed appropriate that I take on the role. Of course, I am only human (or as human as a "nindroid" can be) and can… have my moments.

This is one of those moments.

"Zane, buddy, could you pass me the tomato juice?"

Cole holds a hand out to me and for a second all I can do is stare at his outstretched fingers.

"Tomato juice? Aren't you making fish fillets-?"

"I'm trying something new," he flashes a smile that does nothing to change my expression. "Trust me."

Now, I do trust Cole. As a friend, a brother, and a fellow ninja. He is a good leader, a good teammate, and a good man. As such I do my best to… tolerate the rougher edges of his personality. I understand the others have shorter fuses- Kai had suggested an "intervention" of sorts to confront the black ninja on his intolerable cooking (which inspired ship-wide agreement)- but I have held off so far based on the premise that, as we have grown through training, Cole would also grow through violent trial and error. But as I stare down his questionable choice of tomato sauce and fish, I am starting to doubt my position.

Perhaps a few words of advice will push him in the right direction.

"I don't think that is a good decision," I say carefully. "Perhaps a lemon or parsley sauce-"

Cole gives me a pointed look. "Zane, I know you're the Master Chef and all, but I totally know what I'm doing. Chill."

My jaw shifts and I feel my hands tighten beneath my crossed arms. Ice fills my stomach like a clamp of iron (which could itself be a factor given that it has been a while since I oiled my inner systems) and I take another deep, frigid breath.

Perhaps a bigger push, then.

"Cole, I understand you like to… experiment with your dishes, but if I might suggest-"

He rolls his eyes and another glacier shifts in my abdomen. "Zane, Zane, Zane- did your gears jam up or something? I said I'm fine. Seriously."

He reaches past me to grab the tomato juice, and I have to take another calming breath.

Calm, cool, collected. It is what I was built for, what I have made myself to be. I will not lose myself over something as mundane as-

The can snaps open with a pop of the instrument in Cole's hands, scattering a few drops of the sauce onto the countertop. Why was he always so careless-?

Calm. Cool. Collected.

He removes the lid with the flick of his hand, throwing it in the garbage before turning back to the pan in front of him. I can only imagine what the others will say when he serves it, how they will come to me after dinner asking for another makeshift meal to replace the one they'd picked at because it was so awful-

Cole begins to tip the can into the dish, and I find myself grasping his wrist.

"What the-"

"I can't take this anymore."

I tug the can of tomato sauce away from him and place it on the counter. Cole I push aside until he is a safe distance from the food, giving him a careful look as I retrieve my own tools.

"Zane, what are you doing-?"

"Fixing this," I take a glance at the pan and nearly throw in the towel altogether. "You cut these much too large."

"Well sorry, Iron Chef, but this is my dinner day-!"

Cole cuts off with a yelp as I turn on him- my favored large-bladed knife clasped in my hand. I narrow my eyes at him as the ice overtakes my chest.

"I have had enough of this travesty you call dinner. I have done my best to stomach the thought and even try to steer you in the right direction, but perhaps you are better suited to punching bags than trying to make anything more than a bowl of cereal."

Cole is stunned, that much is apparent in his wide eyes, and even I don't completely understand the words that fly from my mouth. But now that I've started I cannot stop.

"You are a talented ninja and a capable leader, but I am sorry to tell you that your cooking skills are not even sub-par- they are an absolute insult to the culinary arts. The others have been begging me to say something to you for months, but I thought that, like all things, you would learn. But apparently you are as capable of being taught as a rock. I would like to not get physical with you, Cole, but I can and will if you do not step out of this kitchen right. Now."

He takes a step back. "Al-Alright, Zane. Uh- whatever you say, I guess…"

I lower my blade. "Thank you."

"I'll just- uh- go hang out with the others, I guess," he takes another careful step toward the door, then pauses with a grimace. "Am I… Am I really that bad?"

"Please, Cole. Do yourself a favor and go."

"Right. I'm leaving," he ducks out the door, leaving me alone with a mutilated meal and my own conscience.

I turn back to the countertop and select a filet, dropping it on the cutting board as I begin to chop it into more manageable pieces.

"Calm, cool, collected."


	2. Picking Up The Pieces

**2: Picking Up The Pieces**

**Kai and Nya's interaction before Sensei's fateful visit, just months after their father's death.**

**700-ish words. **

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Losing his father was probably the hardest thing Kai's ever had to put himself through. But he did it. Not just for himself, but for his sister. He isn't much older than her himself, but now with the only adult in their lives gone, he's as much of a parent either of them are going to get. Which… doesn't sit right.

In the days following the funeral, Kai and Nya were hovered over by well-wishing (albeit distant) relatives who knew the family enough to mourn their loss, but not enough to take a couple of traumatized children under their wings. So once the crowd (if you could call just a dozen or so people that) cleared out, it was just Kai and Nya. Alone in a dark shop ready to go under.

If anything brought Kai out of his slump, it was that fact. The blacksmith shop was his father's pride and joy, and may lightning strike Kai dead if he lets it slip out of his hands so easily. So he scraped together what he knew and what money he had and he and Nya reopened it. The first few customers came mostly out of pity, but Kai wasn't about to turn the money away. Pride doesn't exactly feed a family or pay the bills. But as time dwindles on, so do their funds.

It's been months since the funeral, and Nya frowns at her accounting book as her brother pounds something into shape behind her.

"Kai…"

He barely pauses to breathe, his face scrunched in concentration at the misshapen piece of metal beneath his gloved hand. "Yeah?"

"I know it's only the second week of the month, but we're making even less than we did in the first three days of last month."

A sigh slips past Kai's lips. "And?"

"And," Nya continues with a forlorn glance at her brother. "If we don't pick up sales, we're not going to be able to keep our lights on, much less afford food."

Kai finally tugs off his gloves and welding helmet, tossing them onto the floor in a movement that makes Nya jump. "I can hardly figure this out in the first place. How am I supposed to make anything good enough to get us the money we need?"

A sympathetic smile touches his sister's face as Nya hops down from her stool and approaches him. She rests her hand on Kai's arm, and it takes a second of tension for him to decide not to shrug it off. "We'll find a way, Kai. We always do. Besides, your stuff isn't _that_ bad."

Kai scowls. "Only because dad made all these molds," his auburn gaze flicks around the shop, filled with brutal reminders of the man who once commanded it. He'd made it look so easy- like it was a walk in the park to pick up a lump of metal and turn it into a tool or a weapon. How is Kai supposed to fill such big shoes?

A grim breath falls from Kai's lips as a smoldering coal pops and finally goes out in its hearth. An ominous sound that only fills Kai's stomach with more dread. "It's going to take a miracle to get us back on our feet."

"Or just a couple of generous customers," Nya says hopefully. Her eyes flick to the horizon with a softness that doesn't spread to her brother. "You never know, Kai. The next person to walk up that path might just be the person that changes our lives for the better."

"Right," her brother rolls his eyes. "And just like that the pigs down the road will grow wings and fly."

A smile quirks Nya's lips. "You never know, Kai. You never know."

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**Next one-shot has not been planned, so pretty much anything goes. Reviews/requests are gladly appreciated and beyond highly considered. Do not be afraid to leave your thoughts!**

**- Fell_and_Fallen - **


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